League Rules

League Rules can be found in the current brochure (PDF document). The remainder of this page explains the workings of some of the less-obvious aspects of the league.

Here's how prizes are awarded at Eastern League races.

The League defines a standard prize list, with prizes in various categories (Open, Women, Vet 40-49, Youth etc.) Each rider is eligible for prizes in at least one category, and sometimes more than one, as follows:

  • Youth U14 riders are eligible for U14 and U16 prizes
In all other cases, riders are only eligible for prizes in their own category.

To allocate the prizes, we work down the race result from the top. For each rider, we look at all the prizes that the rider is eligible for that have not yet been awarded. The rider receives the highest value prize that has not yet been awarded. If a rider is eligible for two or more prizes of equal value, they are given the one for the more "prestigious" category. For example, they would be given an U16 prize rather than an U14 prize. The process continues until we run out of prizes or riders.

It is possible to be awarded your average league points if your normal race is full. There are a number of conditions that you must fulfil in order to qualify for average points:

In the event of a participant's race category reaching full capacity and closing to entries before the event closing date the participant may then chose to Pre Enter the Senior Open Event. The participant must then turn up on the day and add their name to the reserve list (this can only be done on the day). In the instance that no reserve place becomes available in their category and the rider then participates in the Senior Open Event, under the condition that he/she finishes the race, they may apply to the league co-ordinator to have their average League points applied in their own correct category. This can be done on the day or via Email.

To discourage "No Shows" taking valuable event places, the Eastern Cyclo Cross League operates a strict "No refund" policy for all entries that are withdrawn after the event's Closing Date. Refunds for withdrawals made before the event's closing date are at the sole discretion of the Race Organiser. Riders are reminded that due to the high demand for places in Eastern league Events, entries should not be made without a full commitment to attend. Riders consistently failing to start events without notifying the Organisers in advance by email of their withdrawal, may face restrictions on entering future events. Riders are reminded that a withdrawal can only be made via direct confirmed contact with the organiser; Social Media posts are not considered as legitimate withdrawal from an event.

Eastern League race starts are gridded. This is primarily for safety - we want to avoid lots of overtaking in the opening seconds. For this reason, we use a formula that aims to rank riders in their expected finishing position, whilst also ensuring fairness for League and regular Eastern riders.

The actual formula is rather long-winded, but in essence:

  • Rankings are tied to your British Cycling number, so you need to be a member in order to be gridded.
  • In each race that you ride, you are given a ranking score based on your "percentage finishing position". For example, finishing 20th in a 40 rider race gives you the same score as finishing 30th in a 60 rider race.
  • We take your average ranking score over your last 5 races in the current season and previous 2 seasons.
  • We discard your worst ranking score if you have finished 4 or more races.
  • Rankings are updated after each weekend that has a League race.
  • If you don't race for a while, you keep the same ranking score (but you'll lose it if you don't race in two full seasons).
  • It's actually up to the commissaire to grid the riders. He or she will probably use the calculated scores but may make adjustments in order to ensure a safe start.
  • Commissaires will not promote riders onto the front row.

The system isn't perfect (no system is) but it gets most riders into roughly the right place. If you feel you're being consistently gridded three rows back from where you should be, have a word with the commissaire before the race. If you feel you're one row behind where you should be, your best option is probably to ride more quickly.

Occasionally, a rider may feel the need to complain about something that has happened during a race. Any rider who wishes to make a protest at either a Commissaire's decision, or regarding an incident during the race must do so within 30 minutes of the race result being declared. Any correspondence outside of this time may be noted but not acted upon [British Cycling Rule 16.1.4.7]. In short, sending an email on the evening after a race is too late for us to help.